Instant Pot Chicken Pulao

This quick and easy one pot chicken and rice meal is a great gateway dish to Indian cuisine. It’s aromatic and mildly flavored with Indian spices. Thanks to the instant pot, making chicken pulao is nearly effortless.

Everyone knows of chicken biryani, right? Chicken biryani is famous. Like hall of fame, superstardom level famous. Well, let me introduce you to chicken pulao, the quiet and shy relative of biryani who isn’t as interested in the limelight. Don’t get me wrong, pulao is still very special – pulao just isn’t an a-list celebrity if you know what I mean. Chicken pulao is the Solange to biryani’s Beyonce, the Gayle to Oprah, the Roby to Ashley (jkjk Roby). Still, there are times when you might prefer pulao to biryani.

Chicken Biryani vs. Chicken Pulao

Truthfully, I wasn’t even sure if I should share a recipe for chicken pulao on the blog. Why? Because with an Instant Pot, you can make chicken biryani and chicken pulao in the same amount of time. That’s right. Both take the same amount of effort to make. So why would anyone choose to make humble pulao over showy biryani? I’m going to tell you why of course!

For one thing – sometimes you just want a dish that’s a bit lighter, with a bit less spice. A dish that’s wholesome and delicious and isn’t going to steal the show/overpower other dishes. Chicken pulao is a dish that’s comfortable saying “hey, I don’t need to be the star today. Let’s all shine equally.”

Chicken pulao is also a great gateway dish if you’re introducing someone to Indian food for the first time or if you’re making this for kiddos who aren’t accustomed to spices. It’s familiar because it tastes like a regular pilaf… with chicken and aromatic whole spices.

In the past – as in pre-Instant Pot – chicken pulao was the easier dish to make compared to biryani which took far more time and effort. Pulao was a dish that Indian families served more regularly: on weeknights, for gatherings, whenever a nice – but quick – dish was required. Pre-IP, chicken pulao was made in Indian homes more often than biryani. And because of that reason, sometimes when I’m feeling nostalgic for pulao or am in the mood for something a bit lighter, I’ll opt for pulao over biryani.

The great thing about chicken pulao is that it’s easy to adapt – you can use whatever whole spices you prefer – just don’t forget the caramelized onions, those are key. And if you prefer a spicier pulao, just add cayenne or chili peppers or well, more spices.

A Note about Rice

If you’ve made my biryani before then you might notice that this chicken pulao is a teeny bit saucier than my chicken biryani – I think the reason for that is because there aren’t quite as many ground spices to soak up the extra moisture. For that reason, I suggest using basmati rice that will hold up under pressure.

I have said it many times – but this brand of rice – is my favorite when it comes to making basmati rice in an Instant Pot. The grains maintain their texture and remain separate. That can’t be said about all brands, so if you’re using a different brand you may need to reduce the cook time or the soak time. Play around with the cook time until you get the rice the way you prefer. I wish I could test all brands but the truth is, after buying aahu barah rice I really don’t want to use any other (not sponsored).

You can serve this chicken pulao with some raita and achar/pickle for a perfect and simple meal. It would also go really well with my curried tomato soup – a great way to use up those late summer tomatoes.

I can’t wait to hear what you think of this chicken pulao. If you’ve tried both my chicken biryani and my chicken pulao you really have to let me know what you think!

Spices

Instructions

Soak the basmati rice in cold water for 15 minutes. Drain, rinse and set aside.

Press the sauté button. Add the oil/ghee to the pot. When it melts, add the whole spices and stir. Once they begin to sizzle add the onions. Stir-fry for 7-8 minutes or until the onions turn golden brown.

Add the garlic, ginger, chicken and spices. Stir-fry for 5 minutes or until most of the outside of the chicken is no longer pink.

Add the rice and water to the pot and mix well.

Secure the lid, close the pressure valve and cook for 6 minutes at high pressure.

Naturally release pressure for 10 minutes. Open the valve to release any remaining pressure.

Discard the whole spices if desired, sprinkle with cilantro and serve.

Notes

I love this brand of basmati rice – the rice grains are always perfectly cooked! If you are using another brand you may need to reduce the cook time – play around with the times depending on how you prefer your rice.

Thanks for posting this! I love chicken pulao, and there are many times I prefer it over biryani for it’s lighter flavor, like you said. Excited to try this. How would I modify cook time if I use bone-in chicken pieces?

Nyla, awesome I can’t wait to hear what you think of it! If they are small bone-in chicken pieces then they should cook in the same amount of time – if they are larger just sauté the pieces a bit longer before adding the rice and water. Also, make sure they are skinless! Let me know how it goes 🙂

Hi Jonathan, I suggest using whole spices for this pulao that way they aren’t overpowering. Whole spices add a great aroma to the rice whereas ground will be overpowering in my opinion – especially for pulao. If you must use ground, I’d try just a pinch. Let me know how it goes!

Made this ahead of time for a camping trip coming up this weekend. I didn’t have any black cardamom so left that out. My family hasn’t tried it yet but I did and it was AWESOME! I’m almost positive my young boys will gobble this up. I may add peas to it next time just for a little bit of veggies.

Mine gave a “burn” display and I opened the lid to find everything done and tasting great. The rice was just not very fluffy … but it wasn’t soggy either. I wish I knew what went wrong I followed it all precisely.

I have a question about using whole spices. When I’ve done this before, they’re still whole in the finished product. That is unpleasant, and it takes away from the enjoyment trying to pick them out while eating. Am I doing something wrong?

Made this without peppercorns, and black cardamom. Still came out great! What do you think about using onion paste instead of sliced onions? I tried doing that with my south indian chicken fry, and it came out great!

Made this for dinner tonight and we all loved it including my kids (8 & 13). Thanks a lot Ashley for such an easy yet flavorful recipe. I really like that it uses so little basic spices and still turns out so yum!!

I made this last night for my husband and I and it turned out so good! I recently bought an instant pot after a friend shared your blog with me (bought the exact same one) and I’m beyond excited to try all of your recipes. Thank you so much for sharing these delicious and easy recipes and making my life a little easier 😊

I tried with 4 cups of rice. It came out really delicious. The only problem is while adding 4 cups of water I got burn sign in instant pot, and I stopped and left it with natural release for 20 min . Thank you for this recipe. Worth trying!

Since I discovered your recipe, I’ve made it every week. It’s my favorite thing to make in the instant pot. I’ve made it for guests, I’ve shared leftovers with coworkers…everyone loves it! Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe!

I have made this thrice already and will be making it again tomorrow. Biryani gets too spicy for us, this is a perfect blend of every thing! I followed the recipe to the T , my almost two year old and a very picky husband loves it.

I made this last week and my husband and I loved it! I plan to make it again tomorrow for some guests – I will use 3 cups of rice, so will triple all the ingredients. Should cooking time remain the same?
Thanks for the recipe Ashley!

Excited to try your recipes and I am new to using an IP.
I have a lot of chicken breasts in my freezer, can I use them instead of thighs? How much would this change the cooking time?
I read you other posts about different types of rice in the IP, if I wanted to use brown basmati rice do I raise the cooking time to 22 mins like I have seen?
It seems like the cooking time in the IP when you cook rice with meat seems to be based on the type of rice you are using, is this correct?
Sorry for so many questions, hope you don’t mind trying to answer them.
Thanks

Hi Michael, yes brown basmati rice takes 22 mins but you can also use “quick cooking brown rice” which cooks in the same amount of time as regular basmati – I’d suggest the latter if using chicken breasts because otherwise 22 mins will result in overcooked chicken. I’d suggest regular brown basmati when using red meat. Hope that helps!

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by Ashley Singh Thomas

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